Mixed Feelings: The Nichido Contour Palette

I picked this up while I was shopping for tissue and wipes at Watsons. I actually put it back because it was a bit expensive for a Nichido product, but I thought I'd live a little. At P348, the Nichido Contour Palette is probably one of the pricier items from the brand. It contains a matte higlighter, a shading color, and a contour color.

What's the difference between shading and contouring, you ask? Shading is adding a natural color around your face to enhance features. It's much less precise than contouring, which requires a darker shade applied in specific areas to bring out the bone structure. It's a tomayto, tomahto thing because you can definitely use a contour powder to both shade and contour; just adjust the pigmentation!

Anyway, here is my quick feedback on the Nichido Contour Palette:

The Contour shade is very pigmented - I actually wipe my loaded brush on tissue before putting it to my face. I like the shade as it's a neutral brown that looks natural when blended. It's a bit difficult to blend as it's patchy at first, but it works out in the end. I just move my brush briskly across the hollows of my cheeks. Staying power is good at 4-5 hours on my combination skin.

The Shape shade in the middle is a bit lighter and closer to my skin tone. It's a nice color to use if you just want a more natural definition. It's a more forgiving color than the Contour! It doesn't seem to last as long though, at around 3-4 hours of wear. Maybe because it's not as easy to spot as the contour?

The Highlight shade is a matte warm off white. It's patchy and looks chalky against my skin tone if I place too much. If I place too little, it looks completely invisible. Like I'm using translucent powder! You know what, it might actually serve better as a retouch powder than a highlighter.

All shades are quite powdery. Always tap your brush to get rid of excess.

Overall, I'd recommend this palette to makeup newbies who are on a budget. It has three shades after all, for P348! Each has four grams so it will take a while to finish. I wouldn't say it's the best out there, but it will do if you just want to experiment with contouring. What do you think?